Trent Zimmerman (North Sydney, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. How is the Morrison government's economic recovery plan, including tax cuts, helping small businesses and families to recover and make it to the other side of the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in my electorate of North Sydney? Is the Treasurer aware of any alternative approaches?

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for North Sydney for his question, acknowledging his experience as a councillor before coming to this place and his deep commitment to the people of North Sydney. The honourable member understands that the economic recovery is underway. Four hundred and forty-six thousand jobs have been created over the last four months. Consumer confidence is now up seven weeks straight, having recovered 95 per cent of its losses, and consumer sentiment increased by 11.9 per cent—the single largest increase in a budget month since the series first began in 1974. Yesterday, Australia's AAA credit rating was reaffirmed.

I had the good fortune to travel to the member's electorate and to meet with Miller Tripods, a local manufacturing business supporting more than 30 staff and exporting around 70 per cent of what they produce. They told us how JobKeeper has been, in their words, a 'godsend' for their business and for the wellbeing of their staff. They described the instant asset write-off announced by the Morrison government as a 'little ripper' and something that will be supporting their business. Also in the budget there are tax cuts for more than 11½ million Australians, helping to create 50,000 jobs.

But I'm asked: are there any alternative approaches? We know that only those on this side of the House support lower taxes. The same cannot be said for those opposite. They've had more than 12 months of soul searching and a once-in-a-century pandemic to rethink the $387 billion of higher taxes that they took to the last election. Yet it is still on their books. You ask yourself: why are those opposite against lower taxes? Last week, the member for Rankin let down his guard. He went down to the Press Club and he was asked about the legislated tax cuts. What did he describe the legislated tax cuts as? He described them as a 'handout'. Tax cuts are not a government handout. They are the people's money. We are handing back the people's money. Only those on this side of the House believe in lower taxes. Only those on this side of the House will deliver lower taxes.